Adult Filipinos who are already eligible to receive a COVID-19 vaccine booster shot should get vaccinated immediately as protection from the primary vaccination is not sufficient, said members of the Vaccine Experts Panel (VEP).

VEP member Dr. Mario Jiz said that the third dose of a COVID-19 vaccine provides adequate protection against the viral illness.

“With this particular Omicron variant, yung (the) two doses of the vaccine is not sufficient to control Omicron. Pero (But) if you provide a booster dose or a third dose, it is already sufficient to provide protection to Omicron. Ganun po ka-importante ang booster (That's how important the booster is),” he said during a briefing hosted by the Department of Health (DOH) on Wednesday, Feb. 23.

“Kailangan natin ang booster na ito (We need this booster) so we can have some form of protection against variants of concern---regardless kung Delta man 'yan or Omicron man 'yan o kung sino pang variant na dadating (whether it's Delta or Omicron or any other variant that will emerge) in the future. We believe that these boosters are our critical, essential---kulang ang two dose, kailangan talaga yung booster shot (two doses are not enough, we really need the booster shot,” he added.

Protection from the first two doses of COVID-19 vaccine “will easily wane and the booster will be an important part” of a person’s protection against the disease, said Dr. Rontgene Solante, who is also part of the VEP.

“I think we need to encourage everyone na yung mga nakatanggap ng (those who received the) primary vaccine series, it's not enough protection. You need a booster. Now, if we want to transition to a lesser alert level and we want to be protected, that should be the current focus now of the government---to really enhance, ramp up giving boosters, especially the vulnerable population,” he said.

“We know cases are going down but it does not also mean that it will not go up. As we move forward with this ongoing transmission, although there are less cases, the population that we want to protect and should be emphasized to get the booster are the vulnerable population,” he added.

Even if there are studies that show that effectiveness of booster shot wanes, it remains effective. A fourth COVID-19 vaccine booster shot is not yet recommended, said Jiz.

“Ongoing pa yung mga studies (Studies are still ongoing). The CDC has demonstrated as reported, I think two weeks ago, na after four months medyo bumababa na ng konti yung protection against the booster shots. Pero that doesn't mean na kailangan natin magpa-booster ulit (that after four months, the protection from the booster shot is decreasing a bit. But that doesn't mean we need to get a booster again),” he said.

“In fact yung reduction niya, very minimal lang parang meron ka pa ring protection na around 70 percent pa (the reduction is very minimal, it looks like you still have around 70 percent protection). So, that is still very high kasi our general rule naman (because the general rule), if you have more than 50 percent protection, then the vaccine is still effective,” he added.

Omicron-specific booster dose?

There is no need to use the Omicron-specific booster shot from pharmaceutical company Moderna as its current vaccine is effective against the said coronavirus variant, the experts said.

"The booster that we are giving now is effective against Omicron so we don’t need to have an Omicron specific vaccine for now because the current vaccines that we have are already effective against Omicron,” said Jiz.

“So far, the data is suggesting that we don’t need to use the Omicron-specific vaccine because boosting with the regular, original Moderna vaccine is already sufficient,” he added.

This was also seconded by Solante. “We know that the only advantage of an Omicron specific (vaccine) is— it is variant specific. But we know now also that with this regular vaccine, it also has protection against Omicron,” he said.

Accessibility to COVID-19 vaccines

The Department of Health (DOH) said it is working with the different sectors to “expand” the accessibility of COVID-19 vaccines to the public.

“The Department is bringing vaccination services nearer to the people and communities through utilization of pharmacies, primary care clinics and occupational health clinics, as well as vaccination sites in air, sea, and transportation terminals,” it said.

“Churches, parishes, and cathedrals are also being used as additional booster and vaccination areas to increase accessibility,” it added.